1. Field of the Invention
Embodiments of the invention generally relate to catwalks for conveying pipe to a drill floor from a lower section of a drilling rig or drill site. Specifically, embodiments of the invention relate to an apparatus for attaching a “gullwing” to the catwalk so that the gullwing pad will not move toward and away from the catwalk as the gullwing is raised and lowered during the conveying of pipe to the catwalk trough.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a drilling operation or rig work-over operation, whether on a water-based or land-based drilling rig, pipe for the drilling operation, casing, or other tubulars are often stored at or supplied from a level that is lower than the drill floor. Operators typically use a “catwalk” to convey the pipe from the lower level to the drill floor. The pipe is typically mechanically transported (e.g. pushed and/or pulled) in a v-shaped trough, from a level below the rig floor to the rig floor.
Before they are positioned in the catwalk trough and transported to the drill floor, multiple sections of pipe or other tubulars can be positioned on multiple “gullwings” positioned adjacent to the catwalk. The ends of the gullwings positioned away from the catwalk are hydraulically raised to create a slope in the direction of the catwalk and trough. Prior art components known as indexers cause a single section of pipe to roll to the trough.
One problem with existing gullwings is that the pads for the gullwing feet will shift away from the catwalk when the gullwing is raised, and will shift toward the catwalk when the gullwing is lowered. This creates a potentially dangerous situation in that the sliding pads could potentially injure workers working nearby, wear down the ground below the gullwing (thus causing the pipe to be stored in an uneven position), or wear out the feet pads. Accordingly, it would be useful to have a system for connecting the gullwing to the catwalk which would minimize the movement of the gullwing pads when the gullwing is raised and lowered.